


I Know A Place

by fictionalportal



Series: Back to Beacon: Bees Edition [3]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Coming Out, F/F, Gossip, Inspired by BMBLB (the song), Late Night Conversations, Rumors, a secret garden, and lowkey schneekos if you squint, sleepover games, specifically debunking gossip, there's a garden
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-29
Updated: 2019-06-29
Packaged: 2020-05-30 18:42:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19409125
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fictionalportal/pseuds/fictionalportal
Summary: Blake finds herself preoccupied by Yang's recent lunch date with Coco Adel, a notorious heartbreaker. Shenanigans with team JNPR aren't a terribly effective distraction. When Yang asks Blake to go for a late-night walk, Blake can't possibly turn her down.





	I Know A Place

Ruby marched into the dorm with all the grace and subtlety of a Goliath. Blake looked up from her book just in time to see their fearless team leader flop helplessly onto Weiss’ bed.

Weiss entered the room on Ruby’s heels. “Shoes off my bed, you dolt.” Her disgust sounded surprisingly half-hearted.

“I failed. We all failed!” Ruby promptly kicked off her boots, sightlessly sending one flying at Weiss.

Weiss easily dodged the flying footwear and crossed her arms. “Maybe if you spent a little less time disrupting people who were actually trying to study--”

“I take it the test didn’t go well?” Blake interrupted, not in the mood to have her serenity ruined by her teammates’ bickering. She was twenty pages into a thrilling new novel, one that promised mystery, betrayal, and, of course, a dash of romance.

“Why do we even have tests? We can’t take down Grimm with five-paragraph essays!” Ruby wailed.

“It worked on you,” Blake teased.

Ruby simply groaned into Weiss’ pillow.

“Where’s Yang?” Weiss asked, carefully setting Ruby’s boots down by the door.

Blake shrugged. “Haven’t seen her.”

She pretended that the little tug in her stomach was a late-night hunger pang rather than a knee-jerk reaction to the mention of Yang’s unknown whereabouts. Normally, she wouldn’t be so acutely aware of the absence, but Blake hadn’t seen her partner all day.

Not that it bothered her. At all. Why would it?

She certainly hadn’t thought about it during second period when Yang texted that she didn’t need a seat saved at lunch because she was going off campus with Coco Adel. It definitely hadn’t bothered Blake in the cafeteria when she was sandwiched between Jaune, Nora, and a pile of tater tots drowned in flaming hot tabasco sauce. Most of all, Yang's continued absence had absolutely _nothing_ to do with the fact that it had taken Blake a whole two hours to get through those twenty pages. 

Coco. Blake had never really talked to her, but she certainly sounded cool and interesting. At such a small school, there was all sorts of gossip, and some upperclassmen were essentially campus celebrities at this point. Coco Adel was one such student, allegedly the heiress to a perfume empire. She’d apparently started her own high fashion line when she was only 13 years old. She lived in a massive, off-campus apartment that she paid for with her side job as a model in Atlas. As far as Blake knew, any and all of those supposed facts could be true. Nobody with such a stylish name could possibly be boring.

There was some other, less reverent rumors about Coco. They were much more personal, more intimate. Those were the ones that set Blake on edge. Blake certainly didn’t make a point of engaging with gossipmongers, but it was hard not to overhear such things with two sets of ears. It was one thing to hang out with a potential heiress (they all spent time around Weiss, after all), but it was another to go for a private lunch with one of the most notorious flirts in the school. As far as Blake knew, Coco broke as many girls’ hearts as she did Grimm skulls. Blake had a right to worry about her partner’s emotional health--it could affect their field abilities if one of them was distracted by an unreciprocated crush.

And there were rumors about Yang, too.

Between the infamous one-woman night club raid and her habit of ending conversations with a wink and a hair flip, she had quite a reputation. Blake tried not to dwell on the less respectful things she’d heard, but the talk still made her wonder. What her partner did on her own time was her business, and Blake of all people should understand the importance of personal privacy. Still...didn’t they tell each other things? If Yang was involved with someone, she’d let Blake know, right? Friends told each other that sort of thing. Partners, too.

Weiss sifted through her wardrobe and pulled out a silk nightgown. “She’s probably off somewhere _celebrating_ the end of the term.”

Blake couldn’t help but bristle at Weiss’ intonation. Something about her drawl made it clear that she’d heard _things_ , too.

“Back home, we always got ramen to celebrate big tests or the end of term,” Ruby said, sitting up. “She wouldn’t go without me.”

Weiss scoffed. “Obviously I wasn’t talking about ramen.”

“So what were you talking about?” Blake challenged the clear note of judgment in the heiress’ words.

Weiss paused. She wouldn’t dare ruin Ruby’s image of her sister by sharing the more vitriolic bits of gossip, but her hesitation betrayed her.

“You’re being all cryptic and weird, Weiss,” Ruby said, her eyes narrowing in suspicion.

Their leader might seem naive to an outsider, but Blake learned from her first meeting with Ruby that the effervescent girl in the bright red hood could be incisively perceptive at times. Weiss was failing to cover her tone, and Ruby was picking up on it.

Weiss crossed her arms. “Maybe your sister doesn’t tell you everything.”

Ruby gasped, scandalized. “You take that back!”

“How is that an insult?”

Just then, the door burst open and the sister in question barreled in.

“Good evening, teammates!” Yang greeted them with a grin.

Blake’s first instinct was to return the easy expression. How could she not? Every cliché she’d ever read about sunsets flooded her brain, each thought drowning out the last so that the only thing she could focus on was the stunning image right in front of her. That perfect, heart-shaped face. Those charming dimples.

Then she remembered: Coco.

So that was why Yang was smiling so wide.

Even in her elated state, Yang sensed her sister’s distress. She swept up to Ruby’s side and poked her cheek. “How was the big test?”

Ruby let out a full-on wail and slumped back across Weiss’ bed. “Why’d you remind me?”

“Uh-oh. That bad, huh? Well, I’ve got something that’ll make you feel a little better.”

Ruby perked up a little, but she stayed lying down. “What?”

“How ‘bout a party?” Yang proposed.

Weiss glared pointedly at Blake. The _Told You So_ was practically audible.

“Nora ordered this weird candy from Vacuo. It’s like, illegal everywhere else because they use so much food dye,” Yang explained. “We’re gonna see how much she can eat before she throws up.”

"That's hardly a party," Weiss mumbled. 

At the mention of candy, Ruby vaulted out of Weiss’ bed.

Yang looked between her other two teammates. “You guys wanna come?”

The simplicity of the question reminded Blake of one of the things she appreciated most about her partner. The invitation was only that--an invitation. Blake was more than familiar with how expectation sounded when disguised under sweetened words, but there was none of that here.

“Yes! Come!” Ruby exclaimed. She held up a finger and continued in her most serious voice. “I hereby declare end-of-semester celebrating to be an official team event.”

Weiss raised an eyebrow. “I thought you always celebrated with ramen.”

“Traditions can change, Weiss!”

“That’s literally the opposite of the definition--”

“I'll go,” Blake cut in, hoping once again to stop the debacle before it could escalate into a veritable argument. She relished in the fundamental joy of deciding for herself; it was a subtle pleasure she’d never grow tired of. In her past life, someone had convinced her that making her own choices was a trap, a direct path to regret. The only way she could be truly free was if she listened and did as she was told. All the sugar in the world couldn’t drown out the bitter, rotten aftertaste of agreeing to things she didn’t want to do because it was easier than saying no.

As terrible as the premise for this party sounded, Blake found herself actually excited at the prospect of spending time with their friends. A little celebration could be fun--provided no one started actually bouncing off the walls like last time (Ruby’s semblance didn’t blend with birthday cake very well). Plus, if she was being honest, she wasn't getting much reading done anyway.

“Great!” Yang beamed. “Weiss?”

“Remember, this is a mandatory team event you will be penalized if you skip,” Ruby added quickly.

Weiss growled. “Is it too much to hope this will be a quiet evening?”

“Oh, definitely.”

“Then consider this a personal favor,” Weiss concluded, stabbing a finger in Ruby’s direction. “You owe me.”

“A debt I am happy to repay in candy!” Ruby bounced out the door.

Weiss shook her head. “Why do I even bother?”

Blake just shrugged.

A minute later, they were all settled in Team JNPR’s room. Blake joined Pyrrha and Ren on one set of beds, hoping for some pleasant conversation. That possibility quickly defenestrated itself when she saw the absolutely ludicrous spread of sweets on the opposite side of the room. Nora's bed was buried under bags and bags of brutally bright candies. As soon as Yang entered the room, the glint in Nora's eye grew from impish to maniacal. This was certainly going to be...interesting.

Jaune was already sprawled on the floor (in his baby blue footie pajamas) poking at a box of noodles, and Ruby joined him. Weiss trailed in after the rest of her teammates. She took one look at the candy bed, grimaced, and glanced over at the other side of the room. She hesitated--maybe she thought four people sitting on two beds was a crowd. Eventually, she stepped around Ruby and Jaune to barely sit on the edge of Pyrrha’s bed.

“Hello!” Pyrrha greeted Weiss brightly.

“It’s nice to see you guys when our lives aren’t in immediate danger,” Ren said.

Blake scanned over the supply of candy again. “Are we sure they’re not?”

Ruby looked up at her from the floor. “Don’t worry, Blake. Worst case scenario, Yang and I die of a sugar overdose and you’re stuck with Weiss for the rest of time.”

“Hey!”

Ruby snickered to herself.

Jaune hung his head so low he almost face-planted in his food. “I’m pretty sure that test was already worst case scenario, so I’m ready to embrace death by candy.”

“What are the rest of us supposed to do while they gorge themselves on sugar?” Weiss asked. She was barely on the bed at all, and it looked like she was holding up most of her weight with her feet instead of actually sitting. Someone else might not notice it, but Blake was attuned to reading body language. Weiss was deeply, deeply uncomfortable for some reason. And she kept glancing at Pyrrha. 

“I’m glad you asked,” Nora answered. She tossed a sickeningly bright pink bag of candy down to Ruby. “The first rule of candy club: there are no rules in candy club.”

Weiss rolled her eyes. “That doesn’t make any sense.”

“Second rule: no interrupting the rules!” Nora crowed.

Ren raised a hand. "Are all the rules just _about_ the rules?"

Jaune sat up a little and raised his hand. “We could play a game,” he suggested.

“Jaune! That’s genius!” Nora exclaimed.

“Uh, really?”

“I don’t know. I wasn’t really listening,” Nora dismissed. “I’m just waiting for Yang to record me breaking the world record for most Chroma Squiggles consumed in ten minutes. If I set a new record, I get free candy for a _year_.”

Yang already had her scroll out ready to film.

“Ready?!”

“Go.” Yang flashed a thumbs up.

Nora started shoveling alarmingly brightly colored candies into her mouth. More disturbing than the quantity or dye saturation, however, was the brutal crunching noise that followed. She chomped through the Squiggles like Crescent Rose cut through Grimm--and Blake wasn’t sure which was more violent to witness.

Jaune sighed anxiously but left it be. Nobody could stop Nora now.

Ren piped up from his spot against the wall. “How about FMK?”

“What’s that?” Ruby asked.

Yang chimed in while she tried to find the best angle on Nora. “Ruby, we’ve played before. It’s like, a sleepover game.”

Ruby just blinked.

“You list three people and you say which you’d rather sleep with, marry, or kill. It’s not serious, though. We used to call it Bang, Kiss, Fight instead of--”

“Wait, what?” Jaune interrupted. “My sisters told me FMK stood for Fill My Krispies.”

Ruby stifled a laugh. “That doesn’t sound right.”

“Whenever they had friends over and they ran out of snacks, they’d yell ‘FMK!’ and then time me to see how fast I could bring them more chips or krispy bars or whatever. It was kinda fun...I guess...” Jaune’s wistful expression fell away, leaving as much confusion smattered on his face as sweet-and-sour sauce. Then the realization finally hit him. “Oh, man. I was a such a stupid 6-year-old.” He buried his face behind his sticky hands.

Pyrrha patted him on the shoulder. “At least now you have a chance to try the real game.”

“Are we doing no room, room only, or anything goes?” Yang asked.

“Room only?” Blake asked, hoping for clarification on this particular rule set. She was familiar with the general premise of the game, but she wasn’t surprised at this point to learn that there were seemingly infinite variations of these common games.

"Ooh, bold." Instead of offering any explanation, Nora just rose up on her knees and pointed dramatically at the ceiling. “Room only it is!” She proclaimed through a mouthful of half-chewed hard candies.

Yang’s gaze fell on Blake. “I love it when you’re feisty.”

And then she winked.

And Blake felt a strong need to jump into a freezing cold lake.

By the time she recovered and tuned back into the room’s conversation, they had already started. Yang, clearly unperturbed by her own random flirting, started off by asking Weiss the first question. “Weiss: Pyrrha, Ruby, Blake.”

Without a second’s hesitation, Weiss replied. “That’s easy. Kiss Ruby, Marry Pyrrha, Kill Jaune.”

“Jaune wasn’t one of the--”

“I said what I said.”

“I’m feeling a little attacked right now,” Jaune said indignantly.

Ruby took the opportunity to steal a bite of Jaune’s food. “So you can just say whoever? As long as they’re in this room?”

“I think Weiss broke the rules.” Blake answered. 

That earned her a solidly scathing glare.

A loud gasp made everyone turn to Ruby. “Wait! I don’t want to kill any of you!”

“Just replace kill with ignore,” Ren offered.

Ruby exhaled in relief.

As the game continued, Nora tried to participate while still chowing down on candy. Her entire mouth was dyed unnatural shades of blue, green, and red. Needless to say, it made for a rather off-putting sight.

Except for Ruby, who didn’t quite seem to accept that the game was theoretical, nobody took the game too seriously (though Weiss exited rather stiffly after Pyrrha assigned her to the "kiss" category). Nora only ran out of the room to throw up twice, but then she made the mistake of including Ruby amongst Yang’s choices.

“Gross,” Yang said.

“Whoops! Candy brain,” Nora shrugged. “Just say ignore.”

“Don’t ignore me,” Ruby whined.

Yang played along. “Did somebody hear something?”

“Yaaaaaaaaaang!”

“Okay, okay. Ignore Ruby, Kiss Ren, Bang Pyrrha, I guess." 

“Can we maybe play a new game?” Jaune asked. He’d been red-faced ever since Pyrrha chose him for her “marry” option, and he was clearly not recovering anytime soon.

“I think I should go check on Weiss,” Ruby resigned. “I don’t think she likes these kinds of games very much.”

Pyrrha nodded. “I’m a bit tired, too. It’s been a long day. A long semester, really.”

“We’ll get out of your hair,” Blake said, inadvertently catching Yang's eye.

They left Nora groaning about how Ren should never let her eat candy again. The subsequent sound of a plastic bag opening made it clear that she wasn’t standing by her own sanction very well.

Blake was about to open the door to their own room when she felt a light pressure on her shoulder.

She turned around and came face-to-face with her partner. Despite the fact that the hallway was plenty wide, they were...rather close. She couldn’t have been imagining Yang’s hand, still touching her, grounding her without ever feeling like some unwelcome tether or leash. Never pulling, only holding. Supporting. Caressing...

Blake tried to remind herself that it wasn’t like that between them. They were _friends_ and _teammates_ and _partners_ \--and nothing else. But with that faint citrus smell hazing out her sensible side, Blake was having trouble remembering exactly why it was so important to keep her distance.

“Go for a walk with me?” Yang asked.

Despite the suddenly overwhelming proximity--or perhaps because of it--Blake forced herself to protest. “It’s late.”

Yang ran a hand through her hair. “I’m not going in there 'til we get an all clear from Ruby. Pretty sure Weiss is in a bad mood.” Her usual easy smile was conspicuously missing, a nervous one painted on in its place. Blake suspected that it wasn’t related to Weiss’ rotten attitude.

The strange shift in her partner’s demeanor piqued Blake’s curiosity. “In that case, I’d rather risk fighting Grimm in the dark.”

 _Just a walk,_ she reassured herself. It didn’t have to mean anything beyond that, which was both a comfort and a disappointment. They were graciously giving Weiss space to be upset about bombing her test, or whatever was bothering her.

“Did you have anywhere in mind?” Blake asked.

“Sort of,” Yang replied, starting down the hall.

As soon as they stepped outside, Blake felt an unseasonable wave of humidity hit her. Menagerie’s tropical summers had made her essentially immune to such weather conditions, but it was almost unpleasantly warm. 

Blake couldn’t think of a single thing to say. All she wanted to do was ask about Yang’s lunch with Coco, but she was certain that it would make her seem jealous or prying. Which she most definitely was _not_. Her partner could hang out with whomever she wanted. But friends asked each other about things like that, right?

Before Blake could string together her sentence, Yang spoke with an unconvincingly casual tone. “So how are your exams going?”

“Nothing I can’t handle,” Blake shrugged.

Yang smiled. “That’s good. I’m feeling alright about mine so far.”

Exams? That was something to talk about with the kid you share one class with when you awkwardly run into them in the lunch room, not one of your closest friends.

Caving to the need for a decent conversation topic, Blake finally posed her question. “How was lunch with Coco?”

“Good!” Yang said. “Did you know she’s only in her second year? I thought she was a fourth year. I mean, she’s so cool. What second year has their shit together like that?”

Blake hummed in response.

“She’s super easy to talk to,” Yang continued.

Of course Coco was super cool, put together, and a scintillating conversationalist. For not the first time in her life, Blake wished she was more naturally extroverted.

Yang’s hesitation before going on was palpable. “We kind of had a deep talk, actually.”

Blake halted. “About what?”

“I’ll tell you when we get there.” Yang grabbed Blake’s hand and pulled her along.

It wasn’t like Yang to be so mysterious. There was no touch of teasing, and Blake was fairly certain that she wasn’t about to be the victim of some elaborately set up prank (after all, she wasn’t Weiss). As much as she trusted Yang, Blake could feel her most irrational impulses kicking in, telling her to run before she got hurt.

Fortunately, Blake’s conscious mind was winning out over her fight-or-flight instincts, and she managed to fight back against the urge to flee. Something was off in the way Yang was carrying herself. Tension in her shoulders, shorter-than-usual steps, the complete absence of bad jokes. Though Yang had a reputation for being funny, outgoing, and hotheaded, she rarely expressed her true emotions to her team. Maybe she didn’t want to stress her little sister with her problems, or maybe she wasn’t yet comfortable after only a few months of knowing her teammates. Still, Blake sensed there was another reason. Yang was asking for someone to listen, and no matter what she might say, Blake would open all four of her ears in a heartbeat.

Eventually Yang’s hand fell away from Blake’s as they stopped in front of a vine-covered fence.

“This is it!” Yang gestured grandly to the wall of green and white behind her.

Blake scanned over the fence. The vines were a lovely, stunning green under the narrow lights lining the campus’ sidewalks, but otherwise Blake couldn’t spot anything extraordinary. “It’s...nice.”

“Wait ‘til you see the inside.” With that, Yang stepped forward and scaled the barrier in seconds. As she barreled over the top, she paused to smile back at her walking companion.

Blake watched Yang disappear below the line of the fence, her golden hair and light brown jacket barely visible in the small spaces between the vines.

“Come on over,” Yang’s voice sang.

Blake heard the hint of playfulness coloring her partner’s tone. That was more than enough to encourage her to follow. Deft as ever, she grasped the vine-lined diamonds and hoisted herself up. When she reached the top, she invoked her semblance and pushed off of her shadow self, catapulting over.

She expected to touch down coolly, maybe go for a three-point landing, but as she spun in the air she gasped and curled into herself. She was plummeting towards an old, stone fountain half-full of standing water and algae.

Blake braced herself for the inevitably unpleasant impact, squeezing her eyes shut. Instead of meeting an unwelcome splash, two unyielding arms caught her mid-air, cradling her back and legs.

“I gotcha,” Yang chuckled. “Sorry, I should have warned you.”

Blake knew she should probably say something, but she was too busy noticing just how sparkly Yang’s eyes were in the honest moonlight.

Yang’s easy smile dropped away. “Uh, sorry.” She let Blake down in the overgrown grass.

“it’s fine,” Blake said quickly. "I mean, thanks." 

"Yeah. So, what do you think?" 

With the threat of the fountain averted, Blake took in her surroundings. It was a small space, no bigger than their dorm room, completely fenced in. In one corner, a building cut in at an angle, sealing the garden off from the rest of the campus. Pink, purple, and yellow wildflowers kept the bit of brick wall company. The fountain, stained a coppery bluish-green, rested in the opposite corner next to a matching stone bench. Stray flowers populated the rest of the space, mingling with the natural grasses in a perfect, unperturbed harmony.

Looking more closely at the fence, Blake ran her hand over an old, rusted lock hidden among the vines. It must have been completely covered on the other side. She'd probably walked it dozens of times on her way to classes without noticing. How long had this place been hidden? 

“Cool, right?” Yang asked.

“It’s incredible,” Blake exhaled, struck breathless by the sight. “How did you find it?”

“I was running late to Port’s class one day and there was a huge crowd on the sidewalk, so I took a shortcut over the roof.”

“You what?”

“Anyway, I saw that fountain from way up high. I came back later and jumped the fence.” Yang sat down in the grass cross-legged and leaned back against her hands.

Blake joined her in the grass, basking in the stunning tranquility the little garden offered. “Even the library isn’t this quiet, though I suppose that’s kind of a low bar.”

Yang let out an easy laugh, but the serious expression she’d been wearing all evening returned. “It’s nice to have a place to come when it gets too loud everywhere else. Helps me think.”

“What have you been thinking about?”

“Lots of stuff,” Yang said distantly.

Blake wanted to badly to open the door and help Yang through, but her own fear of what might lie on the other side kept her from doing so.

Fortunately or unfortunately, Yang kept her word. “So I was talking to Coco earlier,” she started. “Apparently someone started a rumor that she owns sixty-three fur coats. Wild, right?”

“People say strange things. I heard she lives in a penthouse off campus.”

“I mean, her place is pretty big, but it’s only on the second floor,” Yang said casually. “Definitely not a penthouse.”

Blake tried not to tense up. “So you guys hang out a lot?”

“Not really,” Yang plucked a blade of grass and rubbed it between her fingers. “Today was the first time. I just wanted to ask her some things. It wasn’t really a cafeteria-appropriate conversation, you know?”

 _No, I don’t know, because you haven’t told me,_ Blake nearly blurted out. She restrained herself, instead following Yang’s cue and pulling up a piece of grass to keep her hands occupied.

“Can I tell you something?” Yang asked suddenly.

“Of course.” Blake response didn’t take a second of thought. It was instinct, second-nature to make space for Yang to trust her.

“You can’t tell anyone, okay? Like, for real.”

Blake looked up from the little pink flower by her boot. Yang wore an unfamiliar expression, her eyebrows pressing together and her lips set in a tight line. Blake inched closer so that she could reach for Yang’s hand. “I promise.”

“Okay,” Yang nodded. She withdrew and wiped her palm on her jacket, returning her hand to scoop up Blake’s and hold it firmly. Blake understood the desperate gesture: for once, Yang was letting someone else be the anchor, the rock, the grounding force. And that was not a responsibility Blake would take lightly.

They sat in silence for a few moments, Yang’s thumb absently trailing over Blake’s knuckles. Blake never took her eyes off her partner, waiting patiently even while Yang stared into the ground.

“So Coco, right?” Yang began.

“Yes?”

“She kind of helped me realize something.”

Blake’s stomach flipped, but she ignored it. Whatever feelings she was harboring needed to stay beneath the surface. 

Yang ran her other hand through her hair again, an apparent nervous habit that so rarely manifested in her daily life outside the garden. “You know how she’s dating Velvet? The girl who’s always taking pictures?”

“I didn’t know, actually,” Blake replied, the knot in her stomach loosening slightly. “But Velvet’s sweet. We've talked some.”

“Yeah, they’re super nice. And they’re really great together. Back in Patch there weren’t really any couples like that.”

Blake cocked her head. “A human and a faunus? Unfortunately, I think that's rare pretty much everywhere." 

“Well, yeah, but also...two girls.” Yang’s voice rose as she refused to make eye contact. “It was really surprising, at first. Not, like, in a bad way. More in a ‘whoa, I didn’t know that was an option’ way.”

Blake _wanted_ to bring her free hand to rest on Yang’s cheek, hoping that it would help those violet eyes stop frantically searching for an escape. But there were a thousand reasons that was a terrible idea. 

“So I’ve been thinking about it a lot, and...” Yang cut herself off, abruptly shifting gears. “Look, I know that people say stuff about me. I’m not an idiot. But I’ve never, you know...been with anyone. Sorry, is this too personal?”

Admittedly, Blake’s head and stomach felt like she was on some kind of zero-gravity amusement park ride, but her heart remained still and present. That was all she needed, all Yang needed from her at the moment. “No, you’re fine.”

Yang huffed out an exhale that morphed into a weak laugh. “It’s kind of embarrassing, actually. I’ve never even kissed anyone.”

Blake decided, at that very moment, that gossip was complete and utter bullshit. She’d always known it was harmful and crass, but the fact that Yang knew what people said and made no effort to correct it because she was more embarrassed by the truth? That was twisted on too many levels. She wouldn't be caught eavesdropping without speaking up again. 

“I was never really interested in boys, which made my dad pretty happy,” Yang said. “He always joked that I was a fighter, not a lover.”

The way her voice cracked on the last word made Blake’s heart shatter. “That’s not true,” she said, bypassing her brain and letting the remnants of her heart speak freely.

Yang finally looked at her. “What do you mean?”

“Why can't someone be both? You’re one of the most selfless people I’ve ever met. Even in fights, you’re always looking out for everyone else. Which, honestly, is a little nerve-wracking,” Blake explained. “I don’t know what we would do without you.” _I don't know what_ I _would do without you._

“Well, I’m not going anywhere.” A thundercloud fell over Yang’s face. “I hope.”

Panic rose in Blake’s chest, but she wouldn’t let it overtake her. Just breathe. “What?”

“I mean, like...” Yang searched for the words she needed, staring up at the broken moon hanging against black. “I know how it is sometimes.”

‘Vague’ was an alarming color on Yang. Normally she was so straightforward, and seeing her like this worried Blake more than she could have ever anticipated. Still, Blake had some idea of what Yang was getting at, and she knew she’d experienced something similar not so long ago. “Yang, do you remember when you found out I was a faunus?”

“Yeah. It was only a couple weeks ago.”

Ordinarily, Blake would crack a smile, but in that moment she stayed stoic. “I was so afraid you’d all hate me. That everyone would treat me differently. Some people did, but the the ones who really mattered? You all stood by me. Even Weiss came around eventually.”

“I guess,” Yang’s breathing was so shallow that the rise and fall of her chest was barely visible.

“No matter what’s going on, we’re here for you.” Blake hesitated a moment, then clasped one of Yang’s hands in both of hers. _“I’m_ here for you. Okay?”

Yang nodded slowly. With a deep breath, she held Blake’s hand tighter. “I like girls. A lot. And I’m sure about it now. Hearing Coco and Velvet talk about their experiences, it's like the same thing for me in so many ways."

Even though Yang was the one talking, Blake felt a weight lift from her own shoulders. She didn’t want to overshadow Yang’s moment, so she decided against saying anything about her own inclinations, but it was still a relief to know she wasn’t alone.

Instead, she simply pulled Yang into a hug.

“Can I ask you something?” Blake said quietly, still holding her partner gently.

Yang pulled back to her previous position. “Yeah.”

“What made you tell me now?”

“Oh, um...nothing really, I guess.” Yang ran her hand through her hair. “Nothing specific. There are a couple reasons, I guess." admitted.

Blake put on her best deadpan face, hoping to inject a bit of levity now that the heaviest moment was past. “You’re in love with Coco.”

Yang’s eyes went wide. “What? No--”

“Velvet?” Blake asked, raising an eyebrow and putting on a little smirk.

Yang caught on, hanging her head. “Your jokes are awful, Blake."

“My teammates are terrible influences,” Blake teased. She thought back to earlier that evening when they’d been surrounded by their friends, and something clicked. “Wait, was it that stupid game?”

“Actually, yeah. A little bit. I kinda hate it.” Yang laughed, finally. It was the loveliest sound Blake had heard all day. “Would I really kiss Ren? No way. Is Nora going to hold it over me forever? Probably.”

“You know what’s even worse? When there’s someone in the room you actually _would_ kiss.”

“Right? I dodged a bullet.” Yang let out one blaring laugh--then froze. Her gaze flew to Blake and stayed, that same doe-eyed fear etching itself into her features, lips parted ever so slightly like she was hoping the words could crawl back into her mouth. On its own, it wasn't an incriminating admission, but her reaction spoke volumes.

Blake might have found a way to brush it off for Yang’s sake, but her head was still spinning from their entire conversation and the tension in her stomach refused to subside. As naturally as inhaling, she nodded. A breathy “Yeah” tumbled off her tongue.

Her awareness narrowed to tunnel vision when Yang licked her lips. The garden, the game--Blake forgot it all. All she could think about was closing the distance between them, pushing Yang back into the grass, and letting their legs tangle together. That citrus scent, intoxicating--

Over Yang’s shoulder, a single red wildflower swayed in the gentle breeze. It was enough to snap Blake out of it, and suddenly she was back in the garden, hyperaware of the grass tickling her knees and her right foot falling asleep.

“We should probably get back,” Blake said softly.

“Yeah,” Yang agreed, making no effort to move.

Until her scroll pinged.

She pulled it out of her jacket pocket. “Ruby says Weiss is asleep and to be quiet when we get back.”

Blake uncrossed her legs and stood, extending a hand to help Yang up and hoping that her own damp palms weren’t too obvious through Yang’s gloves.

They walked back to their dorm in an odd silence, unspoken words lurking just under the surface. The feeling faded into a shadow, tolerable for now, but Blake knew she’d have to deal with it eventually.

When they returned, Yang stopped in front of the door abruptly, her hand hovering by the handle. She let it fall and took a last look at her partner, a soft smile curling her lip. “Thanks, Blake.”

Blake nodded once, reciprocating the quiet expression.

Crawling into bed, Blake knew restful sleep would evade her. Then again, nothing worth having came easily.

***

**Author's Note:**

> are the shitty rumors a targeted callout for people who say rude things about yang? maybe so..........
> 
> if there are any scenes you want to see let me know!
> 
> thanks for reading love u <3


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